Clean, coat, lubricate: device ancilliaries at MD&M West

MicroCare Medical will add to its portfolio of medical device cleaning, coating and lubricating products at MD&M West this year.

On show will be the MicroCare Medical Kwik-Check meter for testing PTFE content in Duraglide dry lubricant. The instrument claims to provide a digital readout of the lubricant content instantly, and to within a tenth of a percent.

“This is a major enhancement to any manufacturer’s quality program,” said Jay Tourigny, senior vice president for MicroCare Medical. “The ability to quickly, accurately and inexpensively measure the lubricant improves the consistency of the coating on the finished medical device. It’s a GMP answer, a money-saving answer, and a productivity answer all in one.”

The new test meter is built to medical standards and is engineered for use on the production floor. It can be used to test small batch samples of Duraglide dry lubricant, or (with upgrades) to test the Duraglide directly in the bath.

MicroCare will also show updates to the Duraglide dry lubricant, the group’s flagship nonflammable lubricant for medical devices. The fast-drying Duraglide fluids leave a smooth, even, slippery coating on device surfaces, making the suitable for medical devices with moving, sliding, or rotating surfaces.

The MicroCare Universal Carrier Fluid will also be featured at the expo. This product is a high-purity carrier liquid that dissolves medical-grade silicone, and then in use evaporates quickly, leaving a thin, uniform film of silicone lubricant on the treated article. It can be used as a drop-in replacement for flammable carrier fluids used in the thin film siliconisation of glass, metal, plastic and rubber surfaces.

“Evolving health, safety and environmental regulations have made it increasingly difficult for companies to specify a carrier fluid for silicone lubricants,” Mr. Tourigny said. “This new formula provides a safe, reliable and nonflammable alternative to the widely-used flammable carriers such as hexane or toluene.”

“With these upgrades and new introductions, using new chemistries and capabilities not found in products from other companies, MicroCare Medical has attracted significant interest from medical device makers and electronics’ manufacturers world-wide,” noted Tom Tattersall, MicroCare COO. “Together with our other “green” products within the portfolio, MicroCare Medical clearly is the industry leader in environmentally enlightened cleaning, coating and lubrication.”